Stribog SPA1 Gen 2 review

Ok, so some money was burning a hole in my pocket again and as usual an opportunity presented itself. I got an email from one of the outfits I shop at, and they advertised a Stribog SPA1 pistol caliber carbine for $659.00 with 3 30-round magazines and an SP folding arm brace. I had some reservations about it, but thought “what the heck”? Worst case scenario, I don’t like it so I wait till the next gun ban hysteria narrative hits the airwaves and then I sell it for double my money, since a little gun like that will be a prime target for todays anti-gun politicos, then I can use the proceeds to get something I really wanted. So this started out as an investment weapon.

Before I pulled the trigger on ordering, I watched plenty of YouTube videos on the Stribog and was still somewhat apprehensive. They seemed to be 50-50 mixed of people who either loved or hated them. So again, I thought investment gun to flip for the future. I went on ahead an ordered the gun and waited. 10 days later I picked the weapon up at my local gun store and headed for home and the backyard range to test the Stribog.

The first test involved the stock weapon with 100 rounds each of 115, 124 and 147 grain 9mm ammo from North 40 from Blazer (aluminum case), Federal and Winchester respectively. As I had seen in some videos, the Stribog struggled with the Blazer ammo which was noticeably lighter than the other heavier grain ammo. I had a couple of stovepipes and misfeeds with that stuff. All of the 124 and 147 grain ammo fed just fine. I also had some of the same weight bullets in +P loadings and these worked just fine as well. We put probably 400 rounds through the gun then I cleaned it up and asked my 3 sons what they thought. They all had the same take I did - This was a shooter with a lot of potential, we just had a couple of kinks to work out. So, I started researching. This research led me to find out that there is an almost cult following for this little PCC on Reddit so of course I joined it and began learning about all of the tricks and mods available for this weapon.

I found HB Industries had what I felt was the best accessories for the Stribog so I ordered the following:

The short-stroke buffer.
The compensator.
The replacement iron sights made of steel.
The trigger spring upgrade.

The price for all of the above was a hundred bucks and some change, but it made all the difference in the next backyard range session. I received all of the items about a week later, installed all of the components and me and the boys tested the Stribog again:

This experience was very different from the initial range session. No more hiccups from the 115 grain blazer ammo. The short-stroke conversion not only cured the occasional jam from lightly loaded ammo and actually helped with recoil management a bit. Everything else cycled flawlessly. The replacement Irons were a huge improvement, as the plastic stock offerings had a huge front sight that after 50 yards, essentially covered any target you were aiming at completely. The steel front replacement greatly enhanced the view of the target and is elevation-adjustable. The comp I felt might have helped a little bit with recoil management but I am a person who used to shoot full-house 38 super open guns for 15 years so I am spoiled in that respect - I just don’t think 9mm anything can generate the kind of gas pressure needed to make a comp work properly. By far the biggest improvement was the trigger spring upgrade - I found that the original trigger pull was a very crisp and predictable 5.75 pounds with an excellent reset. Stock out of the box. HUGE surprise, as I had in the past shot CZ scorpions and Ruger PCCs that only dreamed they had triggers that broke and reset like that. So, when I installed the trigger upgrade it reduced the pull weight down to 4.5 lbs with the same crisp pull and reset. Combined with the short stroke buffer turned this weapon into an accurate, fast cycling PCC that would more than hold it’s own with any PCC costing 2-3 times as much money.

Epilogue/Summary - I ended up getting a Vertx commuter sling pack and 3 30-round curved magazines as well as 2 20-round magazines to purpose it as a backpack/truck gun. I also added a QD disconnect at the arm brace from Midwest, inc. and a Magpul QD disconnect in front for a 2-point sling which I decided on a Magpul Gen 3 with dual QD connection points. I prefer the 2-point sling nowadays because it holds the weapon up close against the body as opposed to the single point sling which allows the weapon to move around away from the body, which can be a problem for me during transitions from PCC/rifle to handgun. I finished things out with a night stick 500-lumen light mounted on a Magpul rail I put on. For an optical sight I chose Sigs’ excellent ROMEO MOS red dot because it offered a raised mount, allowing me to use the irons in the event that the dot failed. The price ($119) was most attractive and has proven to be easy to use, durable and accurate. All in all, this is a gun the grew on us, and one we are keeping. I had heard about some problems with the SPA3 Stribogs which use a roller-block styled action for softer recoil, but this one is straight blowback, simple and effective. My take here is that this is definitely a viable platform; The Stribog makes a great backpack weapon or SHTF type option. I carried this weapon in the Vertx sling pack all over a division 1 University campus a couple of weeks ago during a visit with my son, and no one noticed. Of course there were no metal detectors, but I was able to carry this setup all day (9hrs) through and wasn’t over burdened. For the record, I carried:

The Stribog, 1 20-round magazine loaded.
1x20-round magazine spare in one pocket.
2x30-round magazines in another spare pocket.
First aid kit.
Multi-tool.
iPad Pro, 12.9”
Chargers and accessories.

This gun is a good buy, and surprised me. For the money you are getting a weapon that will more than give any PCC a run for it’s money at half the price.

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